'Decent Housing For All Citizens!', Uruguayans Demand

To commemorate the World Day of the Homeless and demand an increase in the budget for housing solutions, hundreds of Uruguayans marched under the slogan "Decent housing for all!" from the Mortgage Bank to the Legislative Palace on Monday.

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"Housing Minister Irene Moreira argues that the Economy Ministry has not loaned money for housing credits. However, she could sign a trust to build small and low-quality houses, which we call 'shoeboxes'," the Uruguayan Federation of Housing Cooperatives for Mutual Aid (FUCVAM) spokesperson Doris Correa said.

Currently, the housing deficit in Uruguay is between 60,000 and 65,000 homes, which generates an upward trend in rental prices. As a result, it is estimated that one-third of lower and middle class renters spend a high proportion of their wages on procuring a place to live each month.

To fight this problem, the FUCVAM urged President Luis Lacalle to pay 2 percent interest on mortgage loans for all cooperatives and strengthen the Rental Guarantee Fund (FGA), which protects tenants' rights. “We must guarantee decent houses for all citizens because this is a human right, which our Constitution protects,” this organization concluded.

On Sept. 15, thousands of Uruguayan workers took to the streets to protest against Lacalle’s decision to reduce the budget of the National Institute of Colonization (INC), which distributes land to small farmers and offers them financial assistance.

The National Workers Convention (PIT-CNT) convened this demonstration, which included demands to defend the right to land, health care coverage, and implement social programs to boost employment and reduce poverty.

"Lacalle's radical adjustment policy against the population's rights and incomes will generate more workers' initiatives and mobilizations," the PIT-CNT Secretary Marcelo Abdala warned.